Of the 35 million Americans over 65, about 1 in 3 will fall in a given year, and 50% of those people who fall require assistance from someone else to get up. Seniors are hospitalized for fall-related injuries 5 times more often than they are for injuries from all other causes. Falls are the leading cause of accidental death for seniors.
Research shows that getting prompt help makes surviving an emergency more likely. The ability to get help also boosts the odds that a senior will continue to live independently. The longer a person spends helpless, the greater the likelihood he/she will be discharged into supportive care. For elderly people who live alone, becoming incapacitated and unable to get help is a common event, which usually marks the end to their ability to live independently. After a fall or other emergency, 90% of people who get help within one hour will continue independent living, but after 12 hours down only 10% of people will continue to live at home.
Fall detectors currently exist and can be split into two categories: shock detection and orientation sensing. The first category relies on the unit to experience a shock to trigger the event. The second category usually uses a tilt switch (mercury switch) and requires the object worn on the person to be oriented such that when they are in the horizontal position it triggers the tilt switch.
However, shock can be received by a shock sensor worn on the person when just bumping into a counter while walking around the home. Also, when one has a serious event (e.g., a sudden cardiac arrest), the person may not fall violently to the ground. Instead, the person may just collapse slowly to the ground thereby not triggering the shock sensor. The tilt sensor also has the drawback that it must be disabled each time the person wants to lie down (e.g., to take a nap or go to bed for the evening).